Texas
Texas Premises Liability Law: Statute, Standards & Key Cases
Texas gives you two years to file a premises liability claim. The state's status-based duty system and 51% bar on recovery make understanding the rules critical before you file.
By 411 Press Legal Desk8 min read
A warehouse worker steps through a rotted section of flooring on the second level of a commercial building and falls twelve feet to the concrete below. The property owner knew about the deteriorated flooring — a building inspector flagged it six months earlier. The owner chose not to repair it.
The worker has a premises liability claim against the property owner. In Texas, where commercial and industrial property injuries generate thousands of lawsuits annually, the rules governing these claims are well-established but contain traps for the unprepared.
Texas uses a status-based system that determines your rights based on why you were on the property. It applies proportionate responsibility rules that can eliminate your claim entirely if you are assigned too much fault. Understanding these rules before you file is not optional — it is essential.
Statute of Limitations
Two years from the date of injury. Under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.003, all personal injury claims — including premises liability — must be filed within two years.
Tolling exceptions: The statute may be tolled for minors (until age 18), for persons who are mentally incapacitated, and in cases involving the defendant's absence from the state.
Government claims: Lawsuits against Texas government entities require notice within six months of the incident. The Texas Tort Claims Act (Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 101) governs these claims and imposes specific damage caps.
Legal Standard
Status-Based Duty of Care
Texas determines the property owner's duty based on the injured person's legal status:
Invitees receive the highest protection. These are persons on the property for the owner's business benefit — customers, tenants, employees of contractors, hotel guests. Property owners owe invitees a duty to:
- Inspect the premises for unknown dangers
- Warn of or make safe any known dangerous conditions
- Keep the premises in a reasonably safe condition
Licensees are persons on the property with permission but not for the owner's benefit — social guests, volunteers. The duty is narrower: the owner must warn of or make safe known dangerous conditions that are not open and obvious.
Trespassers generally receive no duty of care, except that the owner cannot willfully or wantonly injure them. The attractive nuisance doctrine provides protection for child trespassers.
Proving a Premises Liability Claim
A Texas premises liability plaintiff must prove:
- Duty. The property owner owed a duty of care based on the plaintiff's status.
- Knowledge. The owner knew or should have known about the dangerous condition (actual or constructive knowledge).
- Breach. The owner failed to warn of, repair, or make the condition safe.
- Causation. The dangerous condition was a proximate cause of the injury.
- Damages. The plaintiff suffered actual, compensable harm.
The "Open and Obvious" Defense
Texas recognizes the open and obvious defense. If a hazard is so apparent that a reasonable person would have noticed it, the property owner may argue they had no duty to warn. Courts evaluate this from the perspective of what a reasonable invitee would have observed under the same conditions.
This defense does not automatically defeat a claim. Courts also consider whether the plaintiff was distracted by a legitimate reason, whether the condition was in an area where hazards would not be expected, and whether the owner should have taken additional precautions despite the condition being visible.
Proportionate Responsibility
Texas follows modified comparative fault under Chapter 33 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code. If the plaintiff is 51% or more at fault, they recover nothing. If 50% or less at fault, recovery is reduced by the plaintiff's percentage of fault.
Texas also allows responsible third parties to be designated and assigned fault. In a slip-and-fall at a grocery store, for example, the defense might argue a third party (the vendor who spilled something) bears responsibility.
Key Texas Cases
State Dept. of Highways v. Payne (Tex. 1992)
The Texas Supreme Court reaffirmed the status-based duty framework and clarified the burden of proof for premises defect claims. The court held that a premises liability claim requires proof that the owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition — not just that the condition existed.
Wal-Mart Stores v. Gonzalez (Tex. 1998)
The Texas Supreme Court addressed what circumstantial evidence is legally sufficient to establish constructive knowledge in slip-and-fall cases. Flora Gonzalez slipped on cooked macaroni salad that came from the Wal-Mart cafeteria. The court held that when circumstantial evidence is relied upon to prove constructive notice, the evidence must establish that it is "more likely than not" that the dangerous condition existed long enough to give the proprietor a reasonable opportunity to discover it. The court reversed a $100,000 jury verdict for Gonzalez, finding that witness testimony that the macaroni "seemed like it had been there awhile" was insufficient without firsthand knowledge of how long it had been present.
Austin v. Kroger Texas (Tex. 2015)
The Texas Supreme Court addressed the open-and-obvious defense in a case where a Kroger employee fell while mopping a restroom floor. The court held that a landowner generally owes no duty to protect an invitee against dangerous conditions that are open and obvious or known to the invitee. However, the court recognized two exceptions: (1) when circumstances require the invitee to use the unreasonably dangerous premises and the landowner should have anticipated the invitee could not avoid the risk, and (2) when the landowner's negligence in creating or maintaining the condition renders the open-and-obvious nature of the hazard insufficient to protect the invitee. This decision significantly narrowed landowner liability for known conditions.
What Property Owners Must Do
General Obligations
- Inspect regularly. Property owners must conduct reasonable inspections to discover hazardous conditions. The frequency depends on the type of property and the level of foot traffic.
- Repair promptly. Known hazards must be repaired within a reasonable time. What is "reasonable" depends on the severity of the hazard and the difficulty of the repair.
- Warn when repair is not immediate. Visible warnings (signs, barriers, cones) must be placed around known hazards until they are repaired.
- Document everything. Inspection logs, maintenance records, and incident reports are critical evidence.
Residential Landlords
Texas Property Code Chapter 92 imposes specific obligations:
- Security devices — deadbolt locks, window latches, peepholes, and sliding door security bars on all rental units (Chapter 92, Subchapter D)
- Smoke detectors — required in all rental units
- Repair obligations — landlords must make diligent efforts to repair conditions that materially affect the physical health or safety of ordinary tenants
- Retaliation prohibition — landlords cannot retaliate against tenants who report safety issues
Commercial Property Owners
- Regular inspection of flooring, stairways, parking areas, and common areas
- Adequate lighting in all areas open to the public
- Maintenance of elevators, escalators, and structural elements
- Snow and ice removal (where applicable) within a reasonable time
- Compliance with building codes and safety regulations
Available Damages
Successful Texas premises liability claims may recover:
- Medical expenses — past and future
- Lost wages and earning capacity — past and future
- Physical pain and suffering — past and future
- Mental anguish — emotional distress, anxiety, depression
- Physical impairment — loss of physical function
- Disfigurement — scarring or permanent physical changes
- Loss of consortium — spouse's claim
- Wrongful death damages — if the injury was fatal, under Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 71 (see our Texas wrongful death guide)
- Exemplary (punitive) damages — for gross negligence, fraud, or malice. Capped at the greater of two times economic damages plus non-economic damages up to $750,000, or $200,000.
Government entity caps: Under the Texas Tort Claims Act, damages against government entities are capped at $250,000 per person and $500,000 per occurrence for bodily injury.
Practical Next Steps
If you were injured on someone else's property in Texas:
Act within two years. The statute of limitations is strict. For claims against government entities, the six-month notice requirement is even more urgent.
Document the hazard. Photograph or video the condition that caused your injury — the wet floor, broken step, pothole, debris, uneven surface. Do this before it is repaired or cleaned.
Report the incident. Notify the property owner or manager. Ask for a written incident report and keep a copy.
Get witness contact information. Other people who saw the hazard or your injury are important witnesses.
Seek medical treatment promptly. Delayed treatment creates gaps in your medical record that the defense will exploit.
Preserve evidence. Keep the clothing and shoes you wore at the time of the injury. Do not discard them.
Do not give recorded statements to the property owner's insurer. Under Texas proportionate responsibility rules, the insurer will try to maximize the fault assigned to you.
Consult a Texas premises liability attorney. The status-based duty system, open-and-obvious defense, and proportionate responsibility rules all create complexity that requires experienced counsel.
Related Texas Guides
- Texas Negligent Security Law — when the hazard is inadequate security
- Texas Wrongful Death Law — when a premises liability incident results in death
Last updated: May 27, 2026. Consult a Texas attorney for advice specific to your situation.
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